September 2008 – Page 9

September 12, 2008

Hair Loss InformationIs Intercytex Giving Up? – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Dr. Rassman,

On Tuesday of this week, Intercytex posted a press release on their website. This press release outlines the company’s clinical results for 2007.

The release does not tell us anything new about the phase 2 trial of ICX-TRC, which is due for completion later this year. It does, however, say the following:

“We believe the continued development of ICX-TRC would best be carried out in partnership with a specialist in the aesthetics field. We do not intend to finance the continuation of clinical and commercial development of ICX-TRC beyond the current Phase II trial and shall seek to sign a partner when we have the complete data package from this trial. Intercytex has granted Bosley, the largest chain of hair transplant clinics in the US, an option to negotiate distribution rights to the product.”

My initial reaction is that Intercytex no longer thinks it is worth developing the treatment any further. What are your thoughts on this?

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I do not know enough about Intercytex and its research and development to adequately comment of the matter from a medical perspective. This sounds like a business issue. Drugs or techniques developed by one company often get sold off to another company (common in pharmaceutical industry).

September 12, 2008

Women Using Rogaine Foam for Men? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

I recently bought Rogaine Foam for men, because I wanted foam. When I got it home and thouroughly read it, it said not for women. I can’t find foam for women. My question is, is there any health side effects from the active ingred.and can women use the foam for men. My beautician told me she heard about good results with the foam.

Thank you.

If you are a woman losing hair, you can use Rogaine Foam (even though it says “for men”). In fact, I generally inform my female patients that they can use the “for men” brand. The only difference I have found is the “blue” vs “pink” color in the packaging and the concentration of the minoxidil. The “for men” stuff is usually 5% and the “for women” is 2%, though women can use the 5%.

The higher the concentration, the more of a potential for unwanted facial hair growth in some women. That being said, if you are a women that wants to use Rogaine Foam, that doesn’t mean the foam will guarantee you wake up with a moustache and beard. Just something you should watch for.

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September 12, 2008

Revising a Donor Scar with a Tight Scalp? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

I have hair transplant done 2 years ago about 2000 grafts, however I have a donor scar that runs from ear to ear and wider than 1 cm since the skin got constantly pulled. My head skin is very tight,so i am wondering what can I do to fix this ? I want to cut my hair short in the back. Should I transplant hair from other part back to the donor area or any other solutions?

thanks.

You should start doing scalp exercises (see video) and then try to get a surgeon to perform a scar revision surgery with new techniques that are available today. These do not always work, because your body has a new baseline after you have a surgery. You can also try transplanting hair to the scar using the FUE technique, which will work if a revision of the scar does not work. None of these methods are perfect, but they can minimize the look of the scarring. You need to see a doctor to discuss these options for your specific needs and expectations.

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September 12, 2008

Remeron, Buspirone, HGH Releasers, and Propecia – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

First I must say great website. I’ve looked on this thing at least 50 times this past year.

1. My shrink prescribed me Buspirone on top of my Remeron and I looked into the Buspirone and it warns about using it with ketoconazole (Nizoral) and I use the shampoo but I’m also aware that ketoconazole can be taken orally. So what I’m wondering is if the warning is directed towards the pill form of ketoconazole? My shrink says it should be fine but hair loss isn’t really her area of expertise. Also, I’ve been taking Propecia for almost two years and using Rogaine foam for a little over a year and was wondering if the Remeron or Buspirone would prevent Propecia or Rogaine Foam from doing it’s job. The answer I get from my doc is that it should be O.K. as far as she knows. Well, “SHOULD” and “AS FAR AS SHE KNOWS” isn’t the $200 an hour answer i’m looking for.

I ask this because also I’ve been taking HGH releasers for the past two months. One month less than I’ve been on the Remerol and I have experienced quite a bit of hair loss. I’m pretty sure it’s the HGH, but I want to be certain. And if it is the HGH, then people need to read section 2 of this post.

2. I’ve been using HGH releasers for two months. STAY AWAY from them if hair loss is your concern. I’ve had unrealistically awesome results in my frontal area hairline (including the temples) with rogaine foam and a halt in the actual loss process from Propecia (Actually I use Finax and it’s offensivly cheaper). Well, I’ve lost about 70% of the Rogaine dependent hair in the past two months. I just stopped the HGH so I can’t really say if it will grow back or not. I read on here before I made the purchase and saw negative posts about HGH but I wasn’t sure if these people were refering to the releasers or the injections, so I went for it and boy was that a bite on the ass. The brand I used was GenF20 (someone else on here complained about Jintropin, so I went with this one) and like all HGH releasers, they claim that they’ll help with hair loss and also a thicker density. Well it helped with hair loss all right. Helped me schedule an appointment with a Transplant Doctor.

Again, Great site. It’s been really helpful.

Those medications (buspirone and Remeron) can cause hair loss and HGH is also known to do it. Finasteride may help you and I do not see reasons for you not to take it, but you need to check this out with your doctor. Thanks for sharing all of the above information. I am sure that our readers will find it interesting.

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September 12, 2008

Facial Swelling After a Hair Transplant? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Hello Doctor

After a hairline transplant some people get a facial swelling for a few days and some people don’t. My question is : Is a facial swelling a good sign, a bad sign or indifferent, regarding the future success of the operation and healthy grow of the transplants

Thank you

Facial swelling is just an annoyance after a hair transplant that occurs in random individuals. It is neither good or bad. You can always minimize swelling by sleeping at a more up-right angle (so that the fluid drains downward) and in our practice, we rarely see it because of the use of short term steroids during and after the surgery.

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September 11, 2008

Norwood Class 6 Patient Just 10 Days After Surgery (with Photos) – Hair Loss Information – Balding Blog

Hi Doctors,
I’m schedule for surgery with Dr Pak and the last time I was there I forgot to ask to see an example of what I might look like a week or so after surgery. I’m taking a week off from work since I have a ton of vacation time saved up anyway so I’m not concerned about what my scalp will look like during that time. I just didn’t want to go back to work with a swollen head or something. Can you post some photos of a patient that Dr Pak has done? Thanks

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Here’s a recent patient of Dr. Pak‘s that has agreed to show his full face (and results) to the world. He’s very excited about the future of his hair, and although these photos are only 10 days out of surgery, you can see that he’s on the right track. There’s no redness, no scabbing, no swelling (nor did he have any swelling immediately after the procedure)… things are looking great. This is typical with follicular unit transplantation surgery in the hands of an experienced doctor and team, and of course with proper aftercare washing. The patient has a Norwood Class 6 hair loss pattern and had a single procedure of 2468 grafts. I’d like to point out that the grafts were kept at a 1/4″ length at the time of transplant.

Click the photos below to enlarge.

Before:

10 Days After:

September 11, 2008

My Temples Are Still Red and Cobblestoned 2 Weeks After My Transplant – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

I am now two weeks post op from my forth HT. I have had great results the last three times with the same doctor. This time he did some temple work. It is now day 15 and both my temples are still red and I have a slight cobblestoning look. I know that cobblestoning in it’s true form was mainly due to large grafts, grafts too large for the incisions ect. I also understand that a this is what really sets aside a good transplant doctor from another. Is it normal for me to still have reddness and some slight elevation in the temple area after 2 weeks. I was told that while the graft area still should be red now the skin should have smoothed out to an even level by now and I should have no traces of elevation in the transplanted area. If this is true does this mean that I’m going to have a permanently detectable transplant in the temple area?

thanks

Cobblestoning, in my experience, does not occur in follicular unit transplantation. In some patients redness does last weeks or even months, but with those who have had prior transplants, the history of redness from previous transplants should tell you what you need to know. I am unwilling to give you treatment recommendations without examining you. Check with your doctor about your concerns as your recent experience seems different.

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September 11, 2008

Low Testosterone, Low DHT Levels — and Still Have Hair Loss – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

Stats: Male, 26, 156lbs., 6′1″

Dr. Rassman,

I’ve been diagnosed with low testosterone, and I have had low testosterone since I was a teenager. As of a year or two ago, I started taking dutasteride. My DHT tests at 6 on a scale of (20-60.) To me, this sounds like the ideal envrionment for an absence of hairloss, or at least /very/ slow hairloss. However, my hairline has been receeding ever since I hit 19. I find this alarming, as testosterone and more specifically the metabolite DHT have been widely generalized to be “90%” of the cause of MPB.

Have you ever heard of a case of low testosterone and very low DHT levels STILL causing progressive hairloss? Have you any idea why this might occur?

You can have a very HIGH level of DHT and still have NO hair loss, so while DHT is a cause of male pattern hair loss, you must have the gene (or genes) for hair loss. Unfortunately for you, it seems you do have the genes for hair loss and these genes could be very active. If you have the hair loss genes, than even low levels of DHT will cause hair loss.

Did your doctor prescribe dutasteride to you? Considering your age, I would not be taking dutasteride as it is not yet approved by the FDA to treat hair loss and the long term effects are not known. Amongst the side effects are sterility in a small number of men on that drug. The drug is FDA approved to treat prostate issues, and the ages that were part of the drug studies were of an older set (double your age) that had a need for prostate medication.

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September 11, 2008

Hair Loss After Craniotomy – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

(female)
Previously someone mentioned she had had surgery and was losing hair. The reply was something about stress and medications, and a predispostion to balding. My question is how long does the stress and medications phase last? There does not appear to be a predispostion to balding to any of us in the family. I had a craniotomy 2 months ago and I now have a bald spot in the middle of my head about the size of four quarters. It seems to want to grow and then bends and breaks off. Now what? The reply also stated to see a Dr., but what kind? I have asked my neurologist and my PCP – neither has seen this before and the only response I get is “I think it will grow back.” Not an answer, if they haven’t seen this before. Would a dermatologist work? (I also have what looks like dandruff that attaches itself to the hair. But I can actually hear it when it hits the sink (I take a comb to it occassionally to help remove it.).)

Thank You

Hair loss in random patches about the size of a quarter sounds like alopecia areata that can be precipitated by surgery or stress. Also included in the differential diagnosis is telogen effluvium (see article). Your description and condition sounds a bit more complicated than just that, though. You had a craniotomy and there are other issues (things falling from your scalp that makes a sound when hitting the sink?!). I would definitely see a dermatologist.

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September 11, 2008

Hair Falling Out When Towel Drying — Am I Being Paranoid? – Hair Loss Information by Dr. William Rassman

I was wondering. When some of my hair falls out when I’m drying it with a towel, I notice some hair strands are thicker than others. Is that a sign of miniturization? Or am I just paranoid?

Hairs normally fall out at a rate of about 100/day, more when you wash your hair. The hairs that fall out as part of the normal hair cycle are usually normal thickness hairs, but if you lose a miniaturized hair, say goodbye to it, for it may not come back.

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